Thursday, December 13, 2012

The MUSIC Act Aims to Help Independent Labels in U.S.

Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) introduced legislation Wednesday that would make it easier for U.S. independent music labels to access the global marketplace. The Making United States Independents Competitive (MUSIC) Act aims to help small labels by connecting them to new audiences and distributors at trade shows. Independent labels find it increasingly difficult to sell their goods in the global marketplace, Nadler explained in his press release. "This bill would help promote U. S. exports in an extremely competitive industry whose talents cannot be outsourced," he said. Specifically, the bill would authorize the U.S. Department of Commerce to help independent labels in sending their recording artists to international music trade shows. That assistance would include admission costs, support for travel, booth construction and "touring expenses" related to foreign music trade shows. The bill defines an independent label as one with total revenues of less than $50 million, had less than a 1% share of the U.S. recorded music market and is not majority owned by a "corporation, partnership, or other association that has total revenues of more than $50,000,000" in the preceding fiscal year. Under that definition, a large independent such as Big Machine Label Group, the home of Taylor Swift, would not qualify for a share of the $1 million that would be appropriated for each fiscal year from 2013 to 2017.
Read more at http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/indies/the-music-act-aims-to-help-independent-labels-1008049892.story#Q7vwO6M0k5CAXY6k.99